Staff Sgt. William F. Tumbrink, selective service number 37-407 606, was a flight engineer aboard a B-29 "Super Flying Fortress."
He was assigned to the 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron with the 20th Army Air Corps stationed in Guam and photographed occupied Iwo Jima and Japan during daylight hours without any fighter support. Their lone aircraft, a B-29 Super Flying Fortress, did this in one-mile increments, flying east to west and from north to south at 20,000 feet.
They photographed and mapped the island of Imo Jima for the pre-invasion and the two cities in Japan that were eventually to have had the "A" bombs dropped. This was done without fighter support. This action saved several hundred thousand American soldiers, sailors, and Marines' lives.
Because of these heroic actions, he and his crew were awarded the D.F.C. (Distinguished Flying Cross) for their unwavering acts of valor. He was also awarded four bronze stars, three Air Medals with three oak leaf clusters, the Air Offensive Medal, the American Theatre Campaign Ribbon, two Overseas Ribbons, and the Good Conduct Medal, among many other service medals. He also qualified for the Colt 45 on September 11, 1943. M-1 Carbine on October 1, 1943.
Prior to serving on the B-29 "Super Flying Fortress," Staff Sergeant William F. Tumbrink was a member of the flight crew and served aboard a B-25 "Billy Mitchell" as a "Hydraulic Specialist" and a "Radial Engine Mechanic." During the early part of the war, he served in the following campaigns: the Aleutian Islands, the "CBI" China-Burma-Indian Campaign, Guam, Imo Jima, Saipan, and the Marianna Islands.
He was inducted into the Armed Forces in December of 1942 and separated from active duty on October 14, 1945.
Prior to the start of the war, William Tumbrink worked at the Brayton Aircraft Company, located in Saint Louis at Lambert Field, as a "Brake Hydraulic Specialist" and a "Radial Engine Mechanic" working on aircraft.
After his service in World War II, William F. Tumbrink worked for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, located at 8554 Page Avenue. He was employed in the sales division for over 44 years.
My father married the love of his life, Mrs. Virginia Rita (nee Kreps) Tumbrink, on December 29, 1945. They had eight children and raised all of them at 7001 Cornell Avenue in University City, Missouri.
Staff Sgt. William F. Tumbrink, selective service number 37-407 606, was a flight engineer aboard a B-29 "Super Flying Fortress."
He was assigned to the 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron with the 20th Army Air Corps stationed in Guam and photographed occupied Iwo Jima and Japan during daylight hours without any fighter support. Their lone aircraft, a B-29 Super Flying Fortress, did this in one-mile increments, flying east to west and from north to south at 20,000 feet.
They photographed and mapped the island of Imo Jima for the pre-invasion and the two cities in Japan that were eventually to have had the "A" bombs dropped. This was done without fighter support. This action saved several hundred thousand American soldiers, sailors, and Marines' lives.
Because of these heroic actions, he and his crew were awarded the D.F.C. (Distinguished Flying Cross) for their unwavering acts of valor. He was also awarded four bronze stars, three Air Medals with three oak leaf clusters, the Air Offensive Medal, the American Theatre Campaign Ribbon, two Overseas Ribbons, and the Good Conduct Medal, among many other service medals. He also qualified for the Colt 45 on September 11, 1943. M-1 Carbine on October 1, 1943.
Prior to serving on the B-29 "Super Flying Fortress," Staff Sergeant William F. Tumbrink was a member of the flight crew and served aboard a B-25 "Billy Mitchell" as a "Hydraulic Specialist" and a "Radial Engine Mechanic." During the early part of the war, he served in the following campaigns: the Aleutian Islands, the "CBI" China-Burma-Indian Campaign, Guam, Imo Jima, Saipan, and the Marianna Islands.
He was inducted into the Armed Forces in December of 1942 and separated from active duty on October 14, 1945.
Prior to the start of the war, William Tumbrink worked at the Brayton Aircraft Company, located in Saint Louis at Lambert Field, as a "Brake Hydraulic Specialist" and a "Radial Engine Mechanic" working on aircraft.
After his service in World War II, William F. Tumbrink worked for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, located at 8554 Page Avenue. He was employed in the sales division for over 44 years.
My father married the love of his life, Mrs. Virginia Rita (nee Kreps) Tumbrink, on December 29, 1945. They had eight children and raised all of them at 7001 Cornell Avenue in University City, Missouri.
